Danny, the Champion of the World (thing)

A children's book by Roald Dahl that tells the story of a young boy who lives in a village on the edge of a private game preserve where poaching pheasant is a popular sport. He sets out to become the world champion pheasant poacher. My teacher read this book to my class 20 years ago, and I still remember a great deal of it.

SPOILER:

Although the title gives you an idea of how the book will turn out, it's typically Roald Dahl-esque. The plot is pretty typical--a young, poor boy uses his wits and the help of his friends to overcome adversity and achieve lasting fame. The Dahl twist is that he achieves this goal by poisoning thousands of birds that belong to someone else. It's a great book.